Tagged: Jazz

We were pleased to welcome jazz violin virtuoso, Regina Carter to the KPLU studios on June 1 for a unique performance and interview with Evening Jazz host, Abe Beeson.

Accompanying Carter were Will Holshouser on accordion, and Yacouba Sissoko on the kora, a beautiful and unique African harp. The trio performed two selections from Carter’s latest CD, Reverse Thread: Kanou and N’teri (video below) which explore African music in very fresh, surprising and delightful ways.

Do you have a musical instrument that you no longer play? 

If so, donate it to KPLU's Instrument Drive, in support of Seattle JazzED.  They're building a musical library where students can check out an instrument and learn to play jazz. With your help, we can get instruments into the hands of aspiring young musicians who want to learn to play music.

Get more information, and find a drop off location near you!

Only available online – purchase here

Several of Western Washington’s finest high school jazz bands and jazz professionals are showcased on KPLU School of Jazz – Volume 7, the station’s latest CD release which is the culmination of this year’s mentoring project.

It may not be a time-honored tradition just yet, but the Bellevue Jazz Festival is starting to become a regular habit for jazz fans across the region.

The Festival enters its fourth year featuring more than 35 jazz shows in downtown Bellevue, including free shows in clubs and restaurants. Ticketed concerts in the Meydenbauer Theatre include the Charles Lloyd Quartet with Zakir Hussain, Regina Carter, Chris Potter Underground, Tierney Sutton, and the Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra plus the Bellevue Jazz Festival Rising Stars.

You'll find a complete schedule and ticket information at BellevueJazz.com

The Bellevue Jazz Festival is sponsored by KPLU.

April 2011 is the 10th anniversary of Jazz Appreciation Month (JAM), presented by the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of American History.  

The annual celebration pays tribute to jazz both as an historic and living art form, and encourages educators, jazz societies, musicians and the general public throughout the country to take part.

Listen to the Q&A here:

What is the greatest jazz recording ever? That's the questions we asked listeners of KPLU and our jazz stream Jazz 24. From that, we came up with our list of the Top 100 Quintessential Jazz Songs of All Time.

KPLU music and news host Kevin Kniestedt tabulated the nearly 3,000 votes.  One thousand five hundred songs were nominated over a period of several weeks.

Over the past few weeks, we’ve asked you to vote for your favorite jazz songs so that KPLU (along with our 24-hour jazz stream - Jazz24.org) can create a webstream of the 100 quintessential jazz songs of all time. 

Well, the response has been overwhelming! Thousands of votes have come in and we’re now tabulating the results and gathering the songs.

Eric “Two Scoops” Moore is a big, gregarious man who's released seven critically-acclaimed CDs. The Washington Blues Society has honored him with numerous awards. Perhaps more than those accomplishments, the blues musician is better known for his musical spontaneity and his big heart. 

Despite life's challenges and some true hardships, he retains a keen sense of optimism. Flesh eating disease? No problem. His wife Amy's multiple sclerosis?  That's easy. You find out why when you listen to his philosophy. The wild look in his kind eyes starts to tell the story. His uncanny connection with a piano punctuates it.